Coffee to Doctors is like Petrol to a Car
by mydoctortennant
Summary: NO EMERGENCY EXIT UNIVERSE; Arthur Pendragon; learn to use the coffee machine. Set pre/during/after NEE.


Was it too much to ask that whoever drank the last of the coffee put a new one through? Really? Was it too much to expect? The nurses all drank it then never put a new one through. It annoyed Arthur beyond reason. He was there for twenty-four hours, pulling a double shift, with two hours constantly interrupted sleep to get him through.

He hated being a student. He couldn't wait for the day when he was the one giving the orders. He wouldn't settle for anything less and neither would his father. Unluckily for him his father could keep an eye on every single move he made. Then he had Morgana on his case. She was always complaining about his bedside manner, as far as he was aware he was more then capable at making people feel comfortable, delivering bad news to them and making sure every patient left thinking that he had done everything he could have done.

Then he had to report to Dr Hector and he made him feel like crap all over again.

So it wasn't too much to ask to have a nice hot pot of coffee waiting when he wanted two minutes to himself in the Doctor's Lounge; though nice be a word too far, replace hot with lukewarm to cold and you'd have it about right. If you wanted a decent cup you have to go across the road to the coffee shop but there wasn't always time for that.

He threw the pot back onto the machine with a frustrated growl. The bloody nurses.

The door to the Doctor's Lounge opened; Gwen pushed through and headed over to the machine. She rolled her eyes. Arthur Bloody Pendragon had probably emptied it of the rest of its content and not set it back up. He was an arse, he always had been. She'd met him numerous times both whilst Morgana had been in Secondary School and at university. They'd gone to the same place and he was always bothering her when he needed somebody to do his work for him. So Morgana had said. Gwen doubted he even knew her name. She was a nurse. He didn't care anything for her other than somebody to do the brunt work and make him look like the star of the show.

"Is it too much to ask that the nurses fill up the coffee when they finish it?" he snapped slamming an empty mug on the side as she switched the machine to go.

"And here I thought I had done just that. Only I didn't finish the pot," she stated clearly, not looking up at him, making sure the machine had started properly.

"I've been here going on twenty hours, is it too much to ask that the coffee is actually full?"

"If you're going to be a wanker about it, yes," she rolled her eyes. She had a new nurse starting later, or as Morgana had insisted on calling _him_, a murse, she didn't need Arthur's bullshit today, "We've all been here far too long. Don't take it out on me if you lot can't figure out how to put the new filter in."

She turned and smiled at him with distain in her glare. She turned her back on him sharpish eyeing the magazines on the table in the middle of the room. She set herself up on the lumpy sofa, waiting for the coffee to go through.

Arthur winced. Whenever he opened his mouth to her all he could do was being unnecessarily rude, "I shouldn't have it. It's not a doctor's job."

"Weellll I don't remember it being in my job description either. Or perhaps it was between change dips and clean bedpans. Maybe it was next to the part that said kick rude doctors in the groin because they deserve it," she said flippantly as she flicked through a three month old gossip magazine. Why did she make everything hard work? She had obviously listened to Morgana one too many times about how awful a person he was. He really wasn't that bad, she just needed to give him a chance, "You're not king of the castle yet, Dr Pendragon, perhaps when you are you can add the clause to my contract," she stood up and threw the magazine down having read it thirty times before and there was only so many times you could read about Britney Spears' 'latest' breakdown, "Until then, make your own sodding coffee. I'm going to Costa."

Sometimes Arthur wondered why he liked her. She was fiery and gorgeous but completely unbearable. And she had a terrible taste in men. They were always skeezy and nowhere near good enough for her, but she'd never believe him if he said he was. If anything she'd laugh in his face and throw her coffee on him if he so much as moved a hand in her direction.

Still, she'd put the coffee on and buggered off again. At least there would be fresh coffee.

X

Gwen relaxed back into the arm of the sofa coffee cup in her hands half full with what had been left at the bottom of the pot. She had ever intent of filling it back up again but she needed to take the weight off her feet, if only for a moment. She was tired and being five months pregnant wasn't helping.

"You know what, Ewan?" she said running her hand over her bmp absently, "Daddy will submit one day."

"No, Daddy will not," Gwen turned to see Arthur enter the Doctor's Lounge behind her and she smiled.

"Sure you will."

Arthur laughed and approached the coffee. It had been a long shift, a hard shift and all he wanted was some coffee to see him through the next few hours. "Ha," he picked up the jug, "Is it too much to ask that people make more coffee?"

"You aren't incapable of making it yourself, you know," Gwen offered resting her head on the back of the couch and looking up at him, "Wouldn't kill you."

"I've been here for fourteen hours, all I want is coffee."

"Back in the day it was twenty hours, you're getting old."

"Or I've grown more dependant."

"Face it, Daddio, your golden days are behind you," she jested. She watched him pick up the jug again, look lost and replace it, forlorn.

"I'll just go to Costa. It'll be quicker and nicer."

Gwen rolled her eyes and pushed herself up from the sofa, "Bloody hell, Arthur, you couldn't just learn to do it yourself could you?" she snapped. His jaw dropped momentarily before he forced it closed again. Not this again. He knew now not to argue back when she suddenly flipped on him. He wasn't by any means a fast learner; it took her readying herself to throw a cup at his head to make him realise to let the pregnant lady be right all the time, "It's really not that hard!"

"Okay."

"You fill it up. You change the filter. You put in fresh coffee. You press on. It really isn't difficult, a four year old could do it," she said as she slammed the flap shut on the top of the machine and threw the empty coffee packet at her partner.

Arthur bit the inside of his lip to stop himself from laughing. If there was anything worse than arguing back in a time like this, it was laughing. Regardless of how stupid it was.

"Don't you laugh at me, Arthur Pendragon."

"I'm not!"

"You didn't know how to work a coffee machine! One that has been here since forever, that's somewhat pathetic."

"I know my way around other things."

"Get your hands off of me!"

"Guine-"

"No. Learn how to use the bloody thing and you might actually make some friends. Or, you know, your own damned coffee," she said with a bite in tone. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"I have friends."

"But you don't have coffee."

"Give it a minute and I will."

"You're so annoying!"

"But you love me."

"Doesn't stop you from being a wanker."

"Shuuush, Blobby may hear you," he kept his voice steady, keeping his eyes trained to hers in order to calm her down. She was flipping out over nothing and he knew why but it was still a shock all the same went she went from perfectly happy one second to wanting to rip his balls off the next.

"The sooner Ewan learns that you're a wanker the better. You hear that baby?"

"Why are you drinking coffee anyway?"

"It's a long day, a little bit of caffeine isn't going to hurt," she snapped. Arthur raised his hands in settlement, taking half a step back, "Don't try and tell me what to do."

"I'm not."

"Good," she turned her back on him and headed for the door. She exited it pretty quickly and didn't look back. Arthur let out a long sigh of relief.

The coffee machine beeped and he looked over his shoulder and smiled; fresh coffee.

X

Gwen looked around as she entered the Emergency Department with her three year old daughter balanced on her hip. She was screaming and loudly, "Okay, sweetie, calm down," she ran her fingers lightly over her daughter's forehead, moving the hairs that had stuck to her skin back atop her head with the rest of her curls.

"Where's open, William?" she asked the young Doctor being the first person she saw.

"Curtain Four?"

"Thanks," she smiled in thanks and crossed the moderately busy floor to the free bed. She placed her wriggling daughter down on the bed, keeping her hand on her at all times so she didn't roll off.

"You okay, Gwen?" Merlin asked, appearing miraculously at her side.

"She's got a temperature. She won't stop crying and she's refusing all food and drink. I just need to make sure she's okay."

"I'm sure she's fine, Gwen," he reassured with his hand on her shoulder briefly before he reached down to put a calming hand on Lexie's arm. She stopped screaming for a moment looking up at him. He smiled at her and she started to scream again.

"I know, but I just need to make sure."

"William's free; he'll happily do the tests for you. Arthur would just 'Daddy out' on the situation."

"'Daddy out'?"

"Terminology. He'd go OTT just like you would."

"Right."

"Arthur's in the lounge if you want me to look after my beautiful niece for two minutes," Gwen stopped herself from making a remarking about how technically she wasn't his niece until next Saturday. She'd been teasing him for months as it was.

"Thanks, Merlin."

She pushed into the Doctor's Lounge with one last look over her shoulder at her daughter. She was sitting up in Merlin's lap whilst William ran the basic tests. She watched for a second. He really was good with her; he'd be a good father one day.

"Hey you, what you doing here?" Arthur greeted as he poured water into the top of the new coffee machine. It was still shiny.

"Lex is running a fever, just making sure."

"I'm sure you're just worrying."

"Probably. Are _you_ feeling alright?" she said eyeing the coffee machine as the brown liquid started to run through into the pot.

"This, Guinevere, is me being able to work the new coffee machine. I'm not completely culinary failure."

"You put water in the top, it's not exactly a very specialist skill."

"But it _is_ a skill," Gwen laughed, shaking her head. The door opened to the Lounge behind her, Merlin entered with Lexie slowly walking beside him, her hand gripped in his tightly, "Hey Blobs," Merlin let go of her hand and the young girl ran the distance and grabbed hold of his leg. He picked her up and swung her around gently, resting her on his hip, "What's up with you, huh?" he asked her, tapping her lightly on the end of her nose before resting the backs of his fingers on her forehead checking her temperature for himself.

"My tummy hurts," she complained, but she was no longer screaming at the top of her lungs.

"She okay?" Gwen asked Merlin who had swiped a cup and moved the coffee pot out of the way so it would fill up from the fresh stream.

"Yeah, just needs Calpol four times a day," Gwen visibly relaxed, "You're just panicking."

"Yeah, I know. After everything any little thing has me freaked out, you know?"

"Understandable."

"Ready for next week?"

"No."

"Will you ever be?"

"Hopefully."

"What do you think, Lex? Do you think Uncle Merlin should marry Aunty Morgie?" she let out a joyful scream and clapped, "Somebody's excited about being a bridesmaid."

"Sorted your speech out yet?" Arthur asked him only to be countered with a 'have you?' and both of them started laughing nervously, "Later," he confirmed and Merlin agreed taking a long swig of his freshly filled cup.

Gwen moved to take her daughter from Arthur who gave her over willingly, "Let's go home, missy," Lexie wrapped her legs about her mother's waist and flung her arms about her neck and clung on, "See you in a few hours," her husband kissed both her and their daughter good bye and turned back to the coffee machine to pour himself a cup.

"Dad's going to pop by later," Arthur confirmed as Gwen approached the door.

"Then you and Merlin better get cracking on those speeches."


End file.
